There’s a big difference between having information and living with wisdom. Here’s a simple case to consider: a person has a detailed recipe for baking croissants. She has read the list of ingredients as well as the directions; she has the information. But this person is not in the practice of measuring precisely or followingContinueContinue reading “Embracing Grace: Wisdom”
Author Archives: Shelley Linn Johnson
Embracing Grace: Obedience
I’ve been wrestling. Really wrestling – for a while now. Maybe something akin to the circular analysis of the chicken-and-egg metaphor. Which comes first – obedience or spiritual growth? Maybe because I’m human, and specifically an American human, I’ve had to wrestle more than I felt should be necessary. But laying pride aside, I’ve dugContinueContinue reading “Embracing Grace: Obedience”
Embracing Grace: This.
Two decades ago. That’s when I first heard God’s grace compared to the manna of the wilderness-wandering Israelites.1 Daily. God-given. Enough. Yet, God’s people had to get out of their tents to gather it. By faith, they had to trust that what God provided would fill all their needs. Since first hearing this comparison, IContinueContinue reading “Embracing Grace: This.”
Embrace Worship: Holy, Holy, Holy
As we come to the close of our summer series on worship, I’d love to end where we began and with what has tied every facet of worship together: holiness. We know that God alone is inherently holy, a trait that is near impossible to define because it is so rare and absolutely unattainable byContinueContinue reading “Embrace Worship: Holy, Holy, Holy”
Embrace Worship: Sing!
For all my blustering the last twelve weeks about how worship isn’t just about singing songs, today we will focus on that very facet of worship – because music and singing ignite something within us like little else. Music stirs the soul. Lyrics packed with biblical truths that are set to catchy tunes sink deeperContinueContinue reading “Embrace Worship: Sing!”
Embrace Worship: Becoming
In recent days, I’ve heard a few teachers say something to the effect that we become what we behold. Hard stop. Maybe it’s easy to nod and agree with that statement without much actual thought or response. Or this thought might cause us to scrunch our faces and wonder if that’s really true.Or it could challengeContinueContinue reading “Embrace Worship: Becoming”
Embrace Worship: Entering
There’s a true sense of entering into worship that I suspect we take too lightly or don’t consciously consider at all. Perhaps we overlook the literal word because entering seems too commonplace to be holy. Most days we enter buildings and binding contracts, competitions and new seasons.But then we also enter into relationships…and the presenceContinueContinue reading “Embrace Worship: Entering”
Embrace Worship: Remember
The Bible weaves throughout God’s story the history and narrative of God’s people, as well as poetic and prophetic wisdom. That means we can read God’s Word for instruction, encouragement, and revelation. It meets us – personally and corporately – where and when we are. In recent years, I’ve been reading a lot of ExodusContinueContinue reading “Embrace Worship: Remember”
Embrace Worship: Roots
Our Georgia backyard is dotted with trees. Towering trees, averaging fifty feet tall! When storms blow in, these trees don’t just sway. They bend. Back and forth, their trunks lean toward the earth, then bounce back the other way like a hold-your-breath kind of highwire dance. We can hardly watch for fear they’ll plop rightContinueContinue reading “Embrace Worship: Roots”
Embrace Worship: Atmosphere
It started off like most morning sessions at the New Room Conference. Worship. Prayer. Teaching. The speaker paced as she pieced together bits of her story, lacing it full of Scripture – when suddenly the atmosphere in the room shifted. Something unspoken. And holy. Within minutes the flow of people to the front altar wentContinueContinue reading “Embrace Worship: Atmosphere”